Mechanical toy



L. M.- COKINS April 11, 1950 MECHANICAL TOY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 4, 1946 INVENTOR. 450M? M Com/vs.

flrr

| M. COKINS MECHANICAL TQY April 11, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 4, 1946 INVENTOR. Zia/v0 M. fax/ms,

Patented Apr. 11, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,503,655 MECHANICAL TOY Leona M. Cokins, Washington, Ind.

Application October 4, 1946, Serial No. 701,117

One feature of the invention resides in the construction of the lower jaw, head, and ears of the toy herein shown as a horse with linkage so arranged that when reins secured to the lower jaw are pulled, the mouth opens, the head moves downwardly and inwardly and the ears swing from a forwardly facing to a backwardly facing position. These motions not only simulate in a realistic fashion the actual movements of a horse but likewise impart to the face the spirited expression which is characteristic of a horse in action.

Another feature of the invention resides in the articulated movements of the legs and hoofs of the horse actuated in timed relation by suitable linkage driven by cart wheels or the like. The lifelike movements of the extremities of the animal in the present invention are thereby caused to suggest the motions of the trotter.

The full nature of the invention will be understood from the accompanying drawings and the following description and claims:

, Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the horse with a sulky hitched thereto.

Fig. 2 is a front view of the horse.

. Fig. 3 is a rear end view thereof.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the head of the horse showing the novel means which actuate its ears, head, and lower jaw.

Fig. 5 is a sectional on line 5--5 of Fig. 4.

In the drawings, as illustrating one form and application of the invention, atoy horse indicated at H], having a sulky ll hitched thereto, which may or may not be used with the horse as desired, provided there is a driving wheel as hereinafterreferred to. The head I2 is recessed to form a chamber I3 within which is located the actuating means controlling the lower jaw l4 and the ears l5 and IS. The rear portion of. the head terminates in .a pair of spaced shoulders I] and I8 which fit over and receive the forepart of the neck I!) of the horse to which said shoulders are pivotally secured at 20. It is by-reason of this pivotal connection that the downwardly and inwardly movement of the head is accom-,

by. the dotted lines (Fig. ,4) is one of the features of the invention and, in conjunction with the mo- 8 Claims. (Cl. 46-405) tions of the ears, head, and legs, is responsible for the simulated lifelike appearance of the horse. This movement is initiated by a pull upon reins 2] which are secured at 22 to the lower jaw M which is pivotally mounted within the head at 23. 'The rear portion 24 of the lower jaw is bifurcated at 25 to accommodate the curved rod 26 which is secured thereto by the pin 21. The opposite end of the rod is formed into a rack 28 which meshes with a pair of pinions 29. The cars l5 and I6 of the horse, when in their normal position face forwardly. They are supported by rods 30 which in turn are respectively carried by the pinions. In order to maintain the pinions in spaced relation and to prevent any upward and downward play therein, they are encased within bracket 3| which is rigidly secured to inner adjacent sides of the head by means of screws 3la.

When the reins are pulled, the lower jaw M to which they are secured moves downwardly and rearwardly to the position shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 4. This movement causes the rod 26 and the rack portion 28 thereof, to move forwardly thereby imparting movement to the pinions which, in turn cause the ears to move from a forwardly facing position to the position shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 4.

When the reins are released, the jaw snaps to closed position and the ears move to their normal forwardly facing position. This is accomplished through the tension spring 32 which is secured at 33 to the upper and inner portion of the head, and to an eye member 34 positioned on the forward portion of the rod 26. This spring is extended when the lower jaw is opened by the pull on the reins, but upon the reins being released it constrains the rod 26 and the rack portion 28 thereof rearwardly to its normal position thereby closing the lower jaw and causing the ears to move to their normal forwardly facing position.

In addition to the movement of the ears and lower jaw initiated by the pull upon the reins, movement is likewise imparted thereby to the head of the horse- The shoulders .l1 and I8 forming the rear portion of the head are pivoted to theneck ofthe horse. at 20. A pullon the reins also-causes the head to pivot downwardly and rearwardly against the constraint of the flat spring 35 which'is secured to the forward portion of the neck at 36. The free end of the spring is curved downwardly and is in engagement with the curved surface-of-a projection 31 which extends upwardly within; the inner. chamber l3 of the horses head; When the reins are released, the constraint of the spring 35 against said projection causes the head to move forwardly and upwardly to its normal position.

The lifelike movements of the legs of the horse constitute an additional feature of the invention as aforesaid. The thighs 38 and 39 of the rear legs are pivotally secured to the haunch by the pin 40. The lower portion of the thighs are bifurcated to form the ears 4|, 42 and 43, 44, respectively. The upper portions 45 and 46, respectively, of the shank are accommodated by the ears and pivotally mounted therebetween through the medium of pins 41 and 48, respectively, in order to permit the swinging leg action characteristic of a horse. The lower portion of.

the shanks are bifurcated in the region of the fetl-ocks thereb forming the ears 49, 50 andi5l, 52, respectively, which accommodate the .upper portions 53 and 54 of said hoofs,"the upper-portions being pivotally mounted between said cars by the pins 55 and 56. Curved rods 57 and 58 are secured at 591 and on to the lower rearportions of said hoofs and are also secured to an. eye member 6 which is attached to-thelbody of. the horse at 52.

The: rear wheels-53 and 64- are mountedupon and connected by thev cranks '65 and 66* Rods 61 and 6B are pivotally-secured to thecranks at B9 and I and are attachedto the hoofs 53' and -54 at the samepoints-ifiand 6!] of connection as the curved rods 51 :and'58. The rotation of the rear wheels actuates the cranks which through the medium of the rods 61 and .BScause the lifelike movement of the rear legs and hoofs ofthehorsei Themovementof the forelegs is effected in substantially thesame fashion. The forethighs H and 12 ofthehorse are pivotallysecured to the chest by pin 13. The lower portions ofthe respective forethighs arebifurcated thereby forming ears 14, l5,.and it, 11,.respectively, which accommodate the upper portion ofthe shanks 18 and i9 and between which the shank are pivotally mounted by the pins 8t and 8!. The lower portions of the shanksare similarly bifurcated in order to accommodate the upper portions'EZ and 83 of the hoofs which are pivotally mounted therebetween b the pins 84 and 85. The lower rear sections of the hoofs are pivotally connected at 86 and 8'! to the angle arms 88 and189 which extend first radiall and then flare outwardly from and. are mounted upon the hub 99 of the frgnt vheel 9|.

In order to permit the head and neck portion of the horse to swing to the right or to the left as the direction in which the horse'is travelling is changed, its shoulder portion 92 is pivotally connected to its body portion'93 through a pivot bar 9 3. The lower. portion of this bar is bifurcated at Q and '95 and is supported at its lower end by the hub did of the front wheel. Itwill be apparent that .the operator of the horse may change its direction at will and may guide it by pulling the reins to the right or? to the left','thereby causing the pivot bar 94 to swing the front Wheel and the'head andshoulders'of the horse in the desired directioniof travel- The forward'ends cf'zth reins 2| .are'secured at 22 to'thelowerja'wi as aforesaid. .In order to prevent their becoming: fouled with :any'partof the harness 97 or withthe sulky' shafts 93, they are maintained in spaced relation to the back 39 of the horse by upwardly projecting eye members H39 and ml, which are secured to the body of the horse and through which the reins are threaded.

The forward-end of the sulky shafts 98 are secured by screwsto'the body'of the horse at [02 and Hi3. The rear portions of'the shafts are electrically driven.

. 4 connected at I04 and I 05 to angle bar I06, the free ends of which are pivotally mounted on the cranks and 66. The wheels are thereby made an integral part of the toy.

Although the invention is designed primarily for the use of children, it is obvious that a mechanical toy of this nature has attraction for adults as well, such as for use in automatic racing apparatus and the like. In order to add to the fascination of the toy, itzis possible that driving means may be secured thereto in order to impart automatic rotation to the wheels. For this purpose, a motor may be used or the horse can be Also foot pedals may be added so that the toy may be propelled by the foot movements of a child.

While one form of the invention has been illustrated and described in detail, the drawings and foregoing. description are to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character, reference being had to theappended claims.

The invention. claimed. is:

1. A mechanical toy simulating. the vfigureof an animal, having'abody portion/articulated limb extremities pivoted thereto,meansfforicooperatively actuating the extremities, a. recessed head pivoted to the body portion,..a. jaw pivotally secured to the head, a pair of..ears the. lower portions of which. are respectively secured within said recess tov a, pair or. pinions for rotation therewith, and a rack one end of which is secured to the rear portion of the jaw and the opposing end of. which meshes with the pinions for moving said ears. froma forwardly facing to a rear-ward,- ly facing position when the jaw is opened.

2. A mechanical toy simulating the figurehof an animal, having. a body portion, articulated limb extremities pivoted thereto, means' for cooperatively actuating the extremities, a recessed head pivoted to the body portion, a jaw pivotally secured to the head, a pair of earsthe lower portions of which are respectively secured within said recess to apair of pinions for rotation therewith, a rack, one end of which is secured tothe rear portion of the jaw and the opposing end of which meshes withthe pinions, and. reins secured to the forward ,portion of the'jaw for "opening the jaw and moving the head downwardly and rearwardly when a. pull is made thereon.

3. A mechanical toy simulating the figurecof an animal, having a bodyportion, articulated limb extremities pivoted thereto, means for cooperatively actuating the extremities, a recessed head pivotedto the body portion, a jaw pivotally secured to the head, a pair of ears the lower portions of whichare respectivelysecured within said recess to a'pair of pinions for rotation therewith, a rack one end of which is secured to the rear portion of the jaw and the opposing end of whichmeshes'with the pini'ons', and means for closing; the jawthereby movingtheears to a forwardly facing position.

.4. A"mechanica1 toy" simulating the figure "of an animal, having a body portion, articulated limb extremities:pivotedithereto; means I for coop erativgely actuating 'theijextremitiesa recessed .headpi'voted to thebody portion,r.a jaw; pi'votally secured toth'healdxa'pair' of.- ears the lower portions of which are respectivelysecured within said recess to a pair of-pinions for rotation therewith, a rack oneend' of which is secure'dto the rear portion ofthe jaw and the opposing end of which meshes with the, pinions, reins secured to'the forward'iportioniof the jaw, and a. tension spring 1 for constraining said track rearwar'dlywhen the reins are released, thereby moving the jaw to a closed position and the ears from a rearwardly to a forwardly facing position.

5. A mechanical toy simulating the figure of an animal, having a body portion, articulated limb extremities pivoted thereto, means for cooperatively actuating the extremities, a recessed head pivoted to the body portion, a jaw pivotally secured to the head, a pair of ears the lower portions of which are respectively secured within said recess to a pair of pinions for rotation therewith, a rack one end of which is secured to the rear portion of the jaw and the opposing end of which meshes with the pinions, reins secured to the jaw, and means for moving the head forwardly and upwardly when the reins are released,

6. A mechanical toy simulating the figure of an animal, having a body portion, articulated limb extremities pivoted thereto, means for cooperatively actuating the extremities, a recessed head pivoted to the body portion, a jaw pivotally secured to the head, a pair of ears the lower portions of which are respectively secured within said recess to a pair of pinions for rotation therewith, a rack one end of which is secured to the rear portion of the jaw and the opposing end of which meshes with the pinions, reins secured to the jaw, and a fiat spring for constraining the head forwardly and upwardly when the reins are released.

'7. A mechanical toy simulating the figure of a horse having a body portion, fore and rear limb members pivotally mounted thereon and having articulated forethigh, shank and hoof portions, a forward wheel support upon which the hoof portion of each fore limb member is respectively pivotally mounted, a pair of spaced rear wheel supports, a crank axle upon opposing ends of which said spaced rear wheel supports are respectively mounted, and members interconnecting the crank axle at different positions radially of said axle and the hoof portion of each rear limb memher so constructed as to impart articulated lifelike action to said hoof portion when the spaced wheel supports are rotated.

8. A mechanical toy simulating the figure of a horse comprising a body portion, fore and rear limb members pivotally mounted thereon and having articulated forethigh, shank and hoof portions, a forward wheel support to which the hoof portion of each fore limb member is pivotally connected, and a pair of spaced rear wheel supports to which the hoof portion of each rear limb member is pivotally connected whereby articulated life-like action is imparted to said hoof portions when the wheel supports are rotated.

LEONA M. COKINS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 230,749 Crandall Aug. 3, 1880 571,754 Demorest Nov. 24, 1896 1,449,043 Henderson Mar. 20, 1923 1,498,223 Zsarnay June 17, 1924 1,512,972 Zsarnay Oct. 28, 1924 2,266,118 Greenman Dec. 16, 1941 

